Why More Irish Women Are Traveling Solo – ‘The memories I made make the risks seem tiny’
A hostel owner in Quito, Ecuador told me that people who travel are “either searching for something or healing from something”. After almost nine months of solo backpacking, I’ve discovered that there’s some truth to that.
left Ireland in May 2022 with the simple intention of seeing as many places as possible. I hugged my sister, niece and mother goodbye at Kildare train station and promised them I would be fine and know what I was doing.
But deep down I really had no idea. I was 30 and set out on my own with a backpack and a bit of blind hope.
And now? I have visited 19 countries across Europe, the Caribbean, Central and South America. I heard the deep, guttural growl of a howler monkey in the rainforest of La Fortuna, Costa Rica. I jumped in a cenote in Cancun and tasted good, smoky mezcal in Oaxaca, Mexico. I visited Michelangelo’s “David” in Florence and wandered through the ancient ruins of Machu Picchu.
And I’ve met too many people to count.
If I could describe traveling alone in one word, it would be “freedom”. The ability to completely uproot your life to move where you want, when you want is the most graphic and self-affirming example of free will I’ve found. But, of course, it’s a true luxury that’s generally only available to the rich, resourceful, or childless.
Some people I met along the way have endured tremendous loss and pain during the pandemic – seeing the world seems to be the solution. Others simply need variety, new landscapes and real adventures.
In Ecuador, for example, I met 24-year-old Katherine Corcoran from Croydon, London. Traveling alone for four and a half months, she was on her way to Rio, Brazil to learn Portuguese. Over cheap beer on a rooftop in Quito, she told me how she planned to settle somewhere other than the British capital when she returned.
“For me, the biggest benefit is the opportunity for self-exploration and expansion,” she tells me when I ask what she thinks are the benefits of solo travel for women. “As you strip away all your responsibilities and comforts of home (job, friends, apartment, even clothes and possessions), you have a newfound ability to dig deep into who you are and what you want out of life.
“I don’t think that’s possible while living a ‘normal’ life at home,” says Katherine. “The biggest disadvantage is that taxis are expensive because you can’t split the bill with anyone.”
“I would 100 percent recommend women to travel alone,” she continues. “It’s the only way you can really question the status quo of your life and find out what you really want, regardless of other people’s opinions and societal pressures. It’s also a great way to meet new people that you wouldn’t normally meet.”
When travel returns, so does solo travel. Numerous travel companies are reporting a significant increase in bookings, especially from female solo travellers.
“In the wake of the pandemic, we’ve seen a particular surge in solo female travelers over 50,” says Zina Bencheikh of Intrepid Travel. “Nearly half of our bookings from the UK and Ireland this year are from customers aged 50 and over, compared with a third in 2019, and a large proportion of these are solo travellers. People want to get out and explore the post-pandemic world, and they’re not going to let that stop them from being on their own.”
Clients this year, Zina says, include women who are traveling alone after divorce or have retired and are checking destinations off their bucket list. “But it’s a misconception that solo travel is only for singles – many of our clients just have different interests than their partner. While one wants to sit on the beach, the other wants to tackle the Inca Trail or cycle through Thailand.”
During my travels I also met 28 year old Irish woman Martha Ryan from Portmarnock, Co. Dublin.
She had traveled the world solo for a year and a half and had incredibly positive stories, including an experience at a plant medicine retreat with the Shipibo tribe in Iquitos, Peru.
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Solo traveler Martha Ryan
“Without electricity, phone signal or the luxuries of modern life, I slept in a wooden tambo for a week,” she says. It was “an extremely transformational retreat utilizing various plant medicines and indigenous rituals. The lessons I learned from the Shipibo tribe, the other participants who walked the path and of course the medicines themselves will stay with me for a lifetime.”
But Martha had also had negative experiences on Ometepe Island, Nicaragua, including very severe bronchitis and kidney infections.
“At the time, I was in the tropical jungle, hours away from any hospital, health care, or support system that would care for me. I lost a lot of body weight and had a grueling six-month recovery process during which I lost half the hair on my head…it was an extremely difficult time being many miles away from friends or family.”
However, she believes the negative aspects of solo travel are an important part of the experience. Her illness in Nicaragua “allowed me to truly come to terms with myself, to sit with my darkness, to overcome my limiting beliefs, and to find strength within myself that I didn’t know was possible.”
From my own journey, it is clear that men have a sense of freedom and confidence in traveling alone that women have yet to be granted. I’ve looked with envy at male solo travelers wandering back to hostels alone late at night, unafraid of what lurks in the shadows. They don’t spend hours googling their itineraries and some I’ve met even hitchhike from town to town. The reality for women is that travel planning needs to be conscientious.
Would Martha recommend other women to travel alone?
“Travelling is not a vacation,” she says. “It will test you, push you, challenge you and push you beyond the limits of your mind. I truly believe that every woman should travel alone – especially in her 20’s and 30’s – to experience all the colors of life.”
However, if I could offer any advice, it would be expected that something would inevitably go wrong. That way the panic doesn’t set in and you’ll deal with it better. Take a “prepare for the worst, hope for the best” attitude.
Remember, you are outside of your comfort zone, a little fear of the unknown will be part of the process, and it will do you good to screw your head up.
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Hierve El Aqua, Oaxaca, Mexico
The Uber app has been incredibly useful to me in most cities I’ve visited (I tend to google to see if Uber is available depending on which city I’m in and then book if I arrive. If it’s not available, a litany of blogs and travel websites tend to offer a safe alternative). I only use buses when locals and tour guides tell me exactly what to do, but then I’m not the best at getting me from A to B if I don’t have directions. I think it’s good to give up on things like this to protect yourself.
Most importantly, I’m doing exactly what I dreamed of doing outside, but that doesn’t mean I don’t have to keep my well-being in check. Eat well, find time to exercise, and get some sleep. Otherwise your sanity will suffer and you will need your wits, especially when you get sick.
You don’t have to travel alone, of course. Many women also travel alone on small group tours such as those with Intrepid and G Adventures. They seem to offer the best of both worlds – the security that comes with traveling with others, while still giving you the freedom to do exactly what you want to do.
“Over 50 percent of G Adventures travelers are solo travelers in the UK and Ireland,” it says. Last year the company partnered with Hostelworld to launch ‘roamies’ – small group travel with hostel stays – and I’ve written and blogged about some of these trips for their website during my travels. Solo women make up 69 percent of travelers on Roamies tours, it says, and G Adventures has noticed an increasing demand for solo travel in destinations like the Galápagos Islands.
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A tree frog in the Chocó rainforest in Ecuador
Is it lonely to travel alone?
I can’t say I still have it. That’s the thing about hostel hopping; You always have someone with like-minded people who has something interesting to say. Thanks to WhatsApp and Facetime, you can also constantly communicate with family and friends.
If anything, I’ve craved routine — a sleep and exercise schedule and no one else in the kitchen while I try to make dinner. However, these things are so insignificant in the grand scheme of things. As I write this, I’m sitting on an airplane looking out at mountains and terracotta rooftops scattered across the verdant Costa Rican landscape.
All in all, the things I’ve seen, done, and the memories created by stepping out of my comfort zone make the risks seem tiny. For the past eight and a half months I’ve hiked the Uyuni Salt Flats in Bolivia, marveled at the Acropolis in Athens, snorkeled with giant eagle rays and Belizean nurse sharks, and swam with penguins hunting for fish in the Galápagos Islands.
I wandered through a cloud forest to find snakes and scorpions in the Chocó rainforest in Ecuador and found myself surrounded by bioluminescent plankton in Corfu, Greece. I’ve dived into waterfalls in Grenada, flown down Venice’s Grand Canal in a gondola, and hiked through the tall wax palms of Valle de Cocora in Colombia.
Seeing and traveling the world is an incredible gift. Whether you’re doing it alone or with others, healing from something or searching for something, it’s just worth doing while you can.
Solo travel – what to pack
Keep in mind the climates you plan to travel to, but a good rule of thumb is to pack enough clothing to cover you for 10 days in all weather conditions.
I packed a raincoat, a warm jacket, two leggings and two sweaters. The rest consists of t-shirts, shorts, underwear and swimwear and has worked out well so far. I have hiking shoes, running shoes, converse and a pair of flip flops.
I think a backpack is the right luggage for long journeys. I’ve seen too many people struggling up stairs, hills, and rocky terrain with wheeled suitcases, so it’s better to take everything with you from the start. Also, you’re more likely to keep things light and not overspend on unnecessary things.
Things like a quick-drying towel, multi-purpose adapters, a mini hair dryer, and sportswear have proven to be the most useful items for me. I also have a mini iron which has come in really handy (despite the amused looks I get in hostels!).
Airolo is an app that allows you to buy data in any corner of the world for €6 to €9 per week. Expensive but handy.
https://www.independent.ie/life/travel/why-more-irish-women-are-travelling-solo-the-memories-ive-made-make-the-risks-seem-minuscule-42323492.html Why More Irish Women Are Traveling Solo – ‘The memories I made make the risks seem tiny’